TV chef Art Ginsburg -- Mr. Food -- dies at 81

November 23, 2012 12:01 AM

November 23, 2012 12:01 AM

FILE-- In an Oct. 14, 2010 file photo, Art Ginsburg, also known as Mr. Food, is shown during rehearsal in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Ginsburg, has died at his home in Weston, Fla., Wednesday Nov. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz, file)AP

Art Ginsburg, the delightfully dorky television chef known as Mr. Food, died at his home in Weston, Fla., on Wednesday after a struggle with pancreatic cancer. He was 81.

Ginsburg -- who enticed viewers for decades with a can-do focus on easy weeknight cooking and the tagline "Ooh! It's so good!" -- was diagnosed just over a year ago. The cancer had gone into remission after early treatments and surgery but returned earlier this month.

Ginsburg had an unlikely formula for success in this era of reality cooking shows, flashy chefs and artisanal foods. With a pleasantly goofy, grandfatherly manner and a willingness to embrace processed foods, Ginsburg endeared himself to millions of home cooks via 90-second segments syndicated to 125 local television stations around the country, including in the Erie region.

And though he published 52 Mr. Food-related cookbooks, selling more than 8 million copies, he was little known to the nation's foodies and mostly ignored by the glossy magazines. That was the way he liked it.

"They're on the Food Network. They're getting a lot of national publicity. And they're getting big money," he said of fellow food celebrities during a 2010 interview with the Associated Press. "I was always the hometown guy. I don't want to be the super celebrity. When you need bodyguards, that's not my deal."

Ginsburg grew up in the meat business, and eventually started his own catering company. He made his television debut in 1975.